My Post-Pandemic Resolution was to make sure I move every day. Those long days at home were often saved by a nice, long midday walk with my family. However, all Arizonans know that the idea of walks is all well and good until right about when May hits. Those summer temps smack you right in the face, and anything outside after, like, 8am is a no-go!
In an effort to keep up with walking and beat the heat, I started going for walks immediately when my son wakes up in the morning. My son usually wakes up between 6 and 6:30am. I get him out of the crib, and in his jammies and all, we head straight for the stroller. Walking before 7am usually guarantees better temps than waiting until after breakfast. I try to keep a brisk enough pace to get my heart pumping, and I can usually do a 3-mile loop in my neighborhood in under an hour.
To keep my son from going bananas in the stroller for that long, I’ve started just giving him breakfast in there right on stroller tray. This has been very successful for us thus far, but I have learned a thing or two along the way and I wanted to share my favorite on-the-go-stroller breakfasts for the kids.
*Please note: it’s important to keep a close eye on your child as they eat to avoid choking. Even though you’re moving, please continue to exercise caution and provide close supervision when feeding.
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Spinach Banana Muffins
I talked about these magic muffins in a previous post, but they’re seriously my favorite for a million reasons that I’ll have to put in a future post. But these are easy to pop in the microwave from frozen, or put in the fridge and serve them cold as is. They’re great for a stroller breakfast because they are pretty much a complete meal, easy to tear into pieces or serve whole, and they do make some mess from crumbs, but nothing crazy.
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Cheese and crackers
Classic combo, easy for littles to hold, and a sure winner for easy components and a compact carrying vessel. I cut up any old cheese stick and am a big fan of these mini Ritz knock-offs from Trader Joe’s. You can even add some pieces of deli turkey or ham in with it too for some extra protein. I throw everything into our Munchkin Snack Catcher and we’re ready to roll! #seewhatididthere
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Larabars
Oh, how I love a good Larabar! Good, simple ingredients and no added sugar all in a perfect to-go bar. They make a few “mini” varieties perfect for little hands, but I find the full-size ones just as good if I cut it in half. There’s so many flavors and my son has loved them all.
*Pro-Tip on the Larabars: some flavors contain chocolate/chocolate chips which you would think a functioning adult would have had the wherewithal to know not to serve melty chocolate on a warm summer morning…..But, just in case someone else needed the heads up, don’t serve the ones with chocolate on a warm summer morning lest you turn out like this WHITE shirt. #themoreyouknow
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Fruit strips
I get a giant box of fruit strips from Costco. They don’t melt and don’t make crumbs. Solid find for a stroller breakfast.
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Frozen Waffles/Pancakes
Any brand will do! Super easy to toast and then tear into pieces for a breakfast al fesco. Great in the Snack Catcher or straight on the stroller tray. I would again caution against anything with chocolate chips. They can also be a little crumby, but nothing a little shake out at the end can’t fix.
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Scrambled eggs
No, for real! Scramble like normal, let them cool, and serve as usual on the tray. I find that these do good in that Snack Catcher too as long as I scramble them up really good so that they’re nice and firm. (Lesson learned the hard way: hard cooked eggs are not stroller breakfast friendly.)
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Smoothies
The key here is finding the best straw cup. Our fave so far have been these kids Insulated Stainless Steel cups. The straw and drinking spout are big enough for the thicker consistency of a smoothie, and the stainless steel obviously keeps everything nice and cold.
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Yogurt Dots
Frozen yogurt dots are another favorite in our house! I make these ALL. THE. TIME. and with so many different mix ins (any pureed fruit, peanut butter, pumpkin puree, all manner of different yogurt. The possibilities are endless!), you’ll have plenty of variety to keep it interesting for you child.
Full disclosure: these can get kind of messy, but not as messy as regular yogurt in a bowl with a spoon. So, for me, the convenience and nutrition outweighs the small mess that I clean up at the end.
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Any of the old classics
Most of the old standbys work great for stroller breakfast, you just have to get creative in how you offer it. For instance, we’ll do Cheerio’s and strawberries in the Snack Catcher with milk in a sippy cup. Bam! Classic cereal. Peanut butter toast, but I just close it up in a sandwich and that cuts down on most of the mess. (I mean, babies still be babies, so a no mess option will be hard to come by.)
This is by no means an exhaustive list and none of these options are necessarily meant to be a full breakfast on their own. But I mix and match with whatever I have on hand and he gets a decent meal while I get in a solid workout before the sun melts my face off. 🙂
Do you have any other favorite stroller meal ideas? I’d love to hear them in the comments.